1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a testing device for a joystick control circuit, and a method for testing a joystick control circuit, more particularly to a testing device for a joystick control circuit, and a method for testing a joystick control circuit that can be used on a motherboard fabrication line.
2. Description of the Related Art
After the fabrication of the motherboard is completed, the motherboard and every component circuit thereof must be tested before they are delivered to the clients. The testing of the motherboard conventionally takes place on a fabrication line and requires human intervention. More particularly, the game port connected to a joystick control circuit is tested among all the component circuits of the motherboard that are tested.
To test the joystick control circuit, a testing station is generally built up on a motherboard fabrication line. Conventionally, when a motherboard arrives at the testing station, a testing device is then connected to a game port of the motherboard to simulate different actions of the joystick. Those actions comprise, for example, a displacement of the joystick along an X direction and a Y direction within a given reference (X, Y), a push-on action of the joystick buttons, and a release action thereof.
Referring to FIG. 1, the circuit design of a conventional testing device for a joystick control circuit is schematically shown. The testing device 100 conventionally has 15 pinholes corresponding to the pins of the game port of the motherboard, and is designed such that it tests the joystick control circuit with respect to a simulated manipulation of the joystick. In the testing device 100, a first resistor 102 is connected between the pinhole 1 and the pinhole 3, and a second resistor 104 is connected between the pinhole 1 and the pinhole 11. The first and second resistors 102 and 104 have fixed resistance values and simulate given displacements along an X direction. A third resistor 106 and a fourth resistor 108, with fixed resistance values, are respectively connected between the pinholes 8 and 6 and the pinholes 8 and 13, and simulate given displacements along a Y direction.
In turn, circuits between pinholes 2 and 5, pinholes 7 and 5, pinholes 10 and 5, and pinholes 14 and 5 are addressed to buttons of the joystick, wherein the foregoing pinholes are also connected to a short circuit node 110. The short circuit of the pinholes 2, 5, 7, 10, and 14 through the node 110 conventionally represents a push-on action of the joystick buttons while, when there is no short circuit; the joystick buttons should be in a release state.
Referring to FIG. 2, a flow diagram illustrates the conventional testing method of a joystick control circuit with the testing device described above. First, the testing device 100 is connected to a game port (step 202), thereby testing the joystick control circuit with respect to a simulated manipulation of the joystick. Then, according to the results of the testing, it is determined whether the joystick control circuit is functioning normally (step 204). Since the pinholes 2, 5, 7, 10, and 14 of the testing device 100 are short-circuited when it is connected to the game port of the motherboard, a push-on state of the joystick buttons is thus also simulated. If the response of the joystick control circuit is a push-on state of not all of the joystick buttons, the joystick control circuit is evaluated as deficient. If the response of the joystick control circuit is a push-on state of all of the joystick buttons, the joystick control circuit is then evaluated as functioning normally. If the joystick buttons function normally, a testing program (not shown) then outputs a signal to request the tester employee to remove the testing device 100 from the game port (step 206). After the tester employee has removed the testing device 100 and confirmed its removal (step 208), the joystick control circuit is tested again with respect to a simulated release state of the joystick. Then, according to the results of the test, it is determined whether the joystick control circuit responds normally with respect to the release state of the joystick (step 210). With reference to the testing of the joystick buttons described above, since the testing device 100 is removed, the pins of the game port of the motherboard addressed to the joystick buttons are no longer short-circuited, which is equivalent to a release state of the joystick buttons. Consequently, if the response of the joystick control circuit is not a release of all of the joystick buttons, the joystick control circuit then is evaluated as deficient. If the response signal of the joystick control circuit is a release of all of the buttons, the joystick control circuit is evaluated as functioning normally.
In the traditional method such as described above, the tester employee, when receiving the removal information from the testing program, must manually remove the testing device from the game port and confirm the second testing with respect to a release state. Such a manual manipulation may limit the testing efficiency, and, more generally, may affect the delivery time to the clients. A more efficient testing method thus is needed.